


Misdirection (v1.0)

by mcmissiles



Category: DragonFable (Video Games)
Genre: Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-11
Updated: 2019-03-18
Packaged: 2019-11-15 10:35:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18071789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcmissiles/pseuds/mcmissiles
Summary: Stephanie and Amadeus had planned to ignore each other at work to avoid risking Amadeus's secret. Failing that, they come up with a genius plot to throw off any speculation as to how they know each other.That's definitely all it is.ON HOLD while I rework pretty much everything about this.And by "on hold" I mean I'm just doing a total rewrite. New improved version with 30% more detail, 75% more coherent use of headcanons, and (hopefully)100% less content I hate one second after posting to be published sometime soonish.





	1. Chapter 1

Jaania led the small group down the hall, explaining some particulars of the task at hand while Stephanie and Amadeus walked side by side, determinedly ignoring each other.

“For this mission, we’ll need someone with a bit more experience,” said Jaania. She paused for a moment, then sighed. “Stephanie, it’s probably best for you to do this yourself.”

Amadeus snorted. “Are you sure you want to send _her_ for this? You know she has a history of leaving things worse than she found them.”

“I understand your concern, Amadeus, but—”

“You really want to go there?” snapped Stephanie, whirling to face Amadeus. “What have _you_ ever done better?”

“I—” He paused and snarled. “We’re not doing this right now.”

Stephanie glared, her old hatred rushing to the surface despite her better judgment. “Oh, aren’t we? What, you thought I’d just take that from you and move on? I’ve taken enough already, _Amadeus_. Watch your damn mouth.”

His eyes flashed. “You watch _your_ damn mouth, _Hero_ , or have you forgotten you’re being held accountable for once in your life?”

“For _once_? Have you forgotten all those times… have you forgotten the last five years?”

“I haven’t forgotten a _thing_ , Stephanie, you can be certain of that.” He stepped forward, his form just tall enough to loom menacingly over her. He took a breath to say something else.

“Stop it, both of you!” yelled Jaania. “What is _wrong_ with you two?”

Stephanie backed down to glare at her, while Amadeus returned to the picture of composure.

“Stephanie, I would have expected this out of you, but I thought you were above this, Amadeus! Will you stop biting each other’s heads off, or have you forgotten we have bigger issues right now?”

Amadeus shot Stephanie a fierce look, which she returned.

“Stop!” snapped Jaania.

“I didn’t—” began Stephanie.

“ _Stop!_ ” She glared between them.

Amadeus’s eyes flashed scarlet. “Stephanie and I need to have a word,” he said, his face the picture of studied calm. “Excuse us for a moment. We’ll catch up.”

“Work it out, then, and try not to kill each other,” said Jaania before walking ahead.

He grabbed Stephanie by the arm; she yanked it away and followed him into a room off to the side. The moment the door closed behind them, he pushed her into the wall with a force that might have betrayed his true nature had anyone else been there to see it.

“Did I not make myself clear before?” His voice was a low, harsh growl, and his eyes still burned bright red into Stephanie’s. “We. Do _not_. _Know_ each other.”

Stephanie glared back. “I know.”

“You came very close to forgetting.” He snarled. “Did my threat mean nothing to you? Or do you _want_ me to destroy you?”

“ _You_ started it! What, am I supposed to let you say anything you want to me?”

"You think one comment was worth risking both of our skins?”

Stephanie sighed, her glare dulling a bit. “For what it’s worth, I’ll back you up if anyone gets suspicious. But I want you to stop antagonizing me at every opportunity.”

He narrowed his eyes and leaned closer, lowering his voice. “You’d better hope they don’t.”

“You want to calm down?” she asked, holding his gaze. “I’m trying to be helpful here.”

“Yes, you always do that, don’t you? How—” he stopped, realizing at the same time as Stephanie that the tips of their noses were touching.

Stephanie cocked her head. “You sure you’re trying to intimidate me there?”

“What are you—”

“Look at you. Got me pinned to the wall… noses touching… the sustained eye contact alone would be enough in some circumstances…” She had the sense that she was digging herself into a hole she wasn’t sure how to get out of, but wasn’t willing to quit. “I’m just saying, if somebody saw us right now…”

He glared, then smiled slightly. “You know, actually, that’s not a bad idea.”

Stephanie’s grin faded. “Hold on, what?”

“If people thought we acted like that because we were…” He frowned. “Is that not what you were suggesting?”

“I… didn’t think you’d go with it, to be honest.”

“I’m considering it. Given a bit of evidence, people might suspect that we’re—” he made an unreadable face— “hiding something _entirely_ different, before they consider anything else. You don’t have a significant other, do you?”

 Stephanie snorted. “Nope.”

“I figured as much. Good.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing. I’m just not surprised.”

“If you have something to say, then say it!”

 “Keep your voice down.”

“ _You_ keep _your_ —are you just trying to make me mad?”

“Don’t flatter yourself. It’s not my fault you read so much into my suggestion that you’re not a desirable person.”

“That’s bold, coming from someone so obviously into me!”

“ _Someone’s_ projecting!”

“Hey! I’m—not—” She felt her face heat up.

“Sure.” He hesitated. “Putting that aside for a moment, are you up for this?”

She stared at him for a second and nodded. “I am. But _not_ because I actually—”

“Deny it one more time and I’ll be convinced you do.” He leaned in. “Or admit it now and I’ll give you some extra-compelling evidence for our case.”

“What do you—oh.” She shivered as his breath grazed her lips. Her pride fought valiantly, but found itself being forced towards compromise. “I’ll...”

The door clicked, and Amadeus hastily closed the distance between them. Stephanie’s breath caught in her throat as their lips met. He was unexpectedly warm, and Stephanie almost yelped as a sharp pain stabbed her lower lip.

As quickly as he’d leaned in, he pulled away—a stunned Rose member stood in the doorway.

“You will tell no one,” said Amadeus, eyes flashing again. The young man nodded, wide-eyed, and went back the way he’d come.

He turned back to Stephanie, his face falling back into familiar thinly-veiled anger.

“In case you were getting any ideas. This changes nothing.”

“As if I’d be getting ideas.”

He rolled his eyes and walked out, leaving Stephanie to adjust her collar before following him.

 

* * *

 

 

Catching up to Amadeus outside, Stephanie took a quick glance at their surroundings to make sure no one was listening in.

“Hey. About earlier—”

“What.”

“I was _not_ that into it,” she said, making a face and rolling her eyes. “You caught me off guard and you know it. Just clarifying.”

“If that’s what you have to say to get to sleep tonight.”

“No, really. Like you said, this means nothing. I want to make sure you know I’m on the same page with you, there.”

He narrowed his eyes. “Right. Good. Now stop talking to me.”

 

* * *

 

 

Stephanie sat down on the edge of her bed, running a finger across the small cut on her lip.

_He bit me._

She dabbed at it and pulled her finger away. No blood, but she wouldn’t expect any this long after the fact. She was sure it was at least a little visible, though, not that anyone had asked.

With a bit of time to herself, she was able to consider things.

_So my not-exactly-former sworn enemy kissed me, on the lips, not entirely out of nowhere, in an attempt to make up a rumor to distract from the actual secret, which will fuck us both over royally should anyone figure it out. Not… the weirdest thing that’s ever happened, all things considered._

It had worked, probably. Even after what he’d said to the intruder, judging by the guy’s face, she’d be surprised if tales of the hero and the mysterious emissary’s secret affair weren’t already spreading through the ranks of the Rose. That would have thrown anyone who might have caught the scent of some greater mystery off guard, leaving Sepulchure’s identity and daughter that much safer. As far as she could tell, the plan had been a success.

But she hadn’t expected to be so affected. She hadn’t anticipated the warmth of his breath on her lips. She hadn’t expected him to _bite_ her.

It felt weirdly intimate, in a way she wasn’t sure she liked to consider.

_Okay, no, stop right there, we are not crushing on Sepulchure. I have some pride left._

She flinched, realizing she’d been chewing her lip. _No. Stop it._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy, my first ever attempt at a shipfic.  
> This is still very much a WIP and will be updated and/or revised whenever I feel like it, but I wanted to go ahead and post something so I'd stop freaking out about posting something.  
> Welcome to hell


	2. Chapter 2

Near the edge where the woods began to darken, Stephanie noticed another figure making their way down the narrow path. Panicking, she ducked to the side, stumbling on a fallen branch and crunching scattered leaves as she went. The figure stopped and she squeezed her eyes shut, cringing at her own stupidity.

“Were you following me?” asked a familiar voice.

Stephanie cracked an eye open and sighed in near-relief at the sight of the figure’s shockingly red hair and characteristic glare. “No,” she said.

“Just taking the same path as me by coincidence, then?”

“Going to the same place. Didn’t you know that?” She glanced at the trees, not willing to mention Gravelynn’s name or the party she’d planned for that day in case anyone could still hear.

Sepulchure seemed to understand, at any rate, and nodded. “Any particular reason for the noise?”

“Other than momentary panic at seeing a shadowy figure on the path ahead of me and a branch on the ground right in my way? No, no reason.”

He rolled his eyes and kept walking.

Stephanie kept up with him. “So, uh, any news from work? About—how things are working out? With our—”

“I know what you’re talking about. Stop adding things.”

“Okay. Cool. So…?”

“I’ve gotten some interesting glances from people when they thought I wasn’t looking. Nothing else.”

“Hey, that’s promising!”

“Don’t sound so excited.”

“I’m not. Just… optimistic.”

“Right.”

They walked on in silence for a moment before Stephanie spoke up again. “I still have a cut on my lip, you know. What did you do, anyway?”

“Maybe I got overenthusiastic. You didn’t die, did you?”

“Overenthusiastic? I thought you didn’t want to do that in the first place.”

He averted his eyes. “If it looked like we hadn’t done anything, it wouldn’t have been believable. That was an unfortunate result of the time limit. And why are you so fixated on it, anyway?”

Stephanie felt her cheeks flush. “No reason. It was weird. Nobody’s ever bitten my lip before.”

He shot her a quick glance. “It almost sounds like you liked it.”

“What? Nobody—nobody’s saying that! You’re saying that!” She stammered. “Sounds like _you_ were the one who liked it!”

“Me? I already told you this changes nothing! That was nothing but a last-minute distraction!”

“Really? Kiss me right now!”

“I—What?”

“If it doesn’t mean anything. Go for it! Obviously we need the practice!”

“What are you trying to prove?”

“The more you avoid it, the more I think it does mean something.”

“Ugh. Fine! Stand still.” He stopped and leaned towards her, planting his lips firmly on hers. He pulled away after a short moment. “Is that what you wanted?”

“Oh, that was nothing like before. Come on, how are we supposed to convince anyone when you’re like that?”

“You are enjoying this. Why are you enjoying this?”

“I’m just trying to make sure it’s authentic!”

“I’m covered in more illusions than you can imagine and you’re worried about authenticity?”

“Can you feel through them?”

“I—yes, why, what do you… what are we talking about!”

“You have no excuse, then! Kiss me like you mean it!”

_“What is happening right now?”_

“ _Authenticity!_ Are you doing it or not?”

He hesitated for a moment, then wrapped both his arms around Stephanie and pulled her towards him. His body was warm against hers, and she had time to notice a slight smirk cross his lips before they pressed into hers, gently but more fully than before. For a moment she thought he’d pull away quickly, but then his hand tangled itself in her hair and pulled her in closer, bringing her out of her distracted state and prompting her to kiss back. His teeth grazed her lower lip again, but didn’t pierce it this time. She leaned into him, hands reaching around his back, losing track of her thoughts—

And he pulled away, regarding her slightly dazed expression with an air of satisfaction.

“How’s that for authenticity?”

“Uh. Yeah. Good job.” _Unbelievably smooth, there_ , she thought.

“Good. Remember, this changes nothing.”

“…Right.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is stupid thanks


End file.
